West Virginia Taxes Down Despite Coal and Gas Increase

CHARLESTON– West Virginia tax authorities say the state collected $401 million in January, almost $18 million below the budget estimate.

For the first seven months of the fiscal year, the state collected $2.26 billion. That’s $116.2 million below the estimate but $35 million above last year’s receipts.

The consumer sales and use tax was $26.4 million lower than expected.

However, the state’s severance tax collections mainly from coal and natural gas production were nearly $37.3 million, which was $7.2 million above the estimate and nearly 3.2 times greater than the same month last year.

Gas prices have rebounded and coal production has had an uptick from recent declines.